Rita's Ramblings: a basically house-bound woman in Fargo, North Dakota blogging for friends, family, and anybody who finds it interesting. I talk about art or craft projects, my grandson (Ian), the weather, movies, books, health, and whatever happens to be going on in my life. Welcome!

Wednesday, February 28, 2007

Making my bed would be just outright cruel these days. Karma has taken to spending every afternoon under the covers napping. It's her latest thing--hehe!

Change of plans. Dagan and Leah and I spent the day emailing back and forth. I have been concerned about the weather and woke up this morning thinking we shouldn't go. Come to find out Dagan had bad vibes about driving down to Minneapolis this weekend, too--had already sent out an email to us about maybe switching his appointment. Minneapolis is expecting about a foot of snow again between now and the weekend. Just didn't feel right--so we had to trust our instincts. Dagan called and got another appointment for April 16th. Should be much better weather by then, too. So--the trip is off for this weekend. Well, better safe than sorry, I guess. Both Dagan and I didn't get the bad feelings for nothing. Got to trust your gut feelings, right? :(

I tried to call Mary Lou but just got her recorder. I feel badly that we have to wait--again--to see each other, but I guess April isn't that far off.

It is snowing here right now. Like a white fog when you look out the window--just like last time.

I've been going thru the budget for March. Tweaking the food order and figuring out how much I can squeeze out for the critters. I'd like to get Miss Gracie a bigger mirror and some goodies to munch on, as long as I am ordering for Karma. :) In April I am hoping to make another Polymer Clay Express order for some cool polymer clay tools and such. I have to plan ahead. Called the electric company to find out how the budget plan will work at the end of my year now in March--and come to find out they do it basically monthly so you never have a catch-up at the end of the year. Lucky for me, mine has stayed the same!! I had no idea! They do things differently here in North Dakota--ha! I have been very consistent with my electricity, she said--hehe! I guess I need to plan a $10 leeway from now on just in case. She told me it can change from $5-10 a month from your budget amount. Just the tedious little things that have filled my day so far. :)

Oh--the new antenna for the living room TV arrived late yesterday by UPS! I am back in business--nice!!

Dagan doesn't need to come and shovel by my garage and help me get the overnight bag out now. The Shaklee order is due to arrive tomorrow, so Leah will come by and pick it up after I let her know it is here. She can pick out (by smell) which ones of the little surprises she wants--hehe! I hope she likes one of them, at least?! She has a problem with scents, so I never know. Fill you in later---:)

Tuesday, February 27, 2007

Another snowstorm is expected to roll in tomorrow. I emailed the kids to tell them we should pass on painting tomorrow night. But Dagan will stop by after work and help me get my overnight bag out--and I have some things to send with him, too. Seems like we each keep a bag going of things to send to each other--hehe! I have some little surprises for them. Don't want to say in case they happen to peek in here--hehe!Unless our plans get altered by the weather, we are planning on leaving around 10am on Saturday. That way we can take our time if the roads are bad and stop as often as we need to ( or I need to, actually--hehe!) and still get there before dinner time. Mary Lou offered to make us dinner on Saturday night! That will be so nice!! We can just settle in and relax and not have to go anyplace else to eat. :) Thank you, Mary Lou!!!!Still waiting for the antenna to arrive. Maybe today? Should be pretty soon, anyways.I am off to heat up some leftover roast for lunch--yumm!!! Have a great day!

Monday, February 26, 2007

This is what it looked like here in the snow storm. Not too bad, really. White foggy look off in the distance, but the snow was fine and drifted a lot. We only got 5 inches over the weekend. In southern Minnesota the news said they had up to 20 inches and power outages. The worst of it missed us again--but because of the drifting snow and getting everything plowed out, the outlying schools had a two hour delay this morning. Karma begged to go outside on the porch.

She digs at the snow...

and loves to eat it!

I took an Alleve (generic-naproxen sodium) last night and then I couldn't sleep. Heart pounding and doing the skittery thing it does. Threw them out. I noticed that the last time I took one for a headache late at night. Since it was a 12 hour pill--I laid in bed for hours. Too tired to get up but unable to sleep because of the irratic heartbeats. And--funny--still have the headache this afternoon anyways--hehe!

All that--combined with watching the Oscars--threw me totally off my schedule. I finally got to bed toward morning and slept till 12:30pm. I need to get back to my routine again.

I was so glad to hear that the Academy Awards went "green" this year!!! And An Inconvenient Truth won best documentary and so did Melissa Etheridge's song "I Need To Wake Up" from the movie! :)

After the awards show the local news came on. I had to laugh--the documentary "Jesus Camp" (one of the ones that lost to An Inconvenient Truth) was about a camp in Devil's Lake, North Dakota. The little clip they showed looked like a little indoctrination camp--hehe! The newscaster said that the lady who runs the camp didn't want to win the Oscar because she'd already gotten enough hate mail already!!! No lie! I don't know why I found that so amusing, but I did. You have to be pretty out there to get hate mail for promoting Jesus in the MidWest!! ROFL!!! :)

Also, FYI--Fargo was rated the top city out of 72 American cities for clean environment. ??? Must be because the wind blows all the pollution right out of the city--haha!!

The air is pretty clean up here--that's true. But, there are no recycle bins in this apartment. Weren't any in the one I lived in over in Moorhead, either. When I lived in Minneapolis, apartments there had recycling. So, they still have a ways to go.

I don't watch the news very often. They had a report on the quads born to a couple in West Fargo two years ago. They were born 3 1/2 months early and given about a 20% chance to live. They have had over 30 surgeries at a cost of about 4 million dollars in medical bills so far. One of the little boys just died a few months ago--quit breathing. The little girl has Cerebral Palsey and can't walk. None of them can talk and they all wear thick glasses. They have certainly had a rough time of it. What an ordeal! And it is far from over yet.

I remember the tiny premies in the Neo-Natal Unit when Dagan was there when he was a baby. Dagan was huge compared to the little premies. I saw a 1 pound baby come in back then--lived about a day. Skin was like clear plastic wrap over red muscles and blue veins--and sooo tiny!! Yes, these quads were very lucky to survive at all. (They were all around 1-1.5 pounds.) The parents are just thrilled they are here. I remember the feeling. :)

Dagan has been blessed since he was born. He was a "miracle baby", too. Fortune has smiled upon him--angels have watched over him. He is a "miracle adult" now. Dagan has always been the greatest joy and blessing in my life. He is the something I did right. :)

Sunday, February 25, 2007

The wind hasn't been in my direction since it started snowing yesterday. Still snowing right now. First real snowfall of the season. Got several inches! Don't have the weather channel anymore, so can't pop on and see how much. Online it just says another inch expected today. I am listening to the sounds of the snow plow in the parking lot as I am writing this.I had taken a frozen roast out on Friday when it was so cold--thinking ahead. So, yesterday I slow cooked the roast all day!! Seven hours! And it gradually warmed up in here. What's funny is--I got so hungry smelling that yummy roast that I ate leftover chicken stir fry and never ate any of it when it was done. hehe! Just packaged it all for the frig and then made gravy and put that in the frig, too. But, I have food for the week and it warmed the place up! hurray!I emailed Dagan to ask him to bring a shovel with him Wednesday night so we can get into the garage so I can get my overnight bag for our trip to Minneapolis next weekend. He said he'd bring a shovel. :) Dagan is due for his yearly check-up with his cardiologist in Minneapolis. His appointment is on Monday, so we are driving down on Saturday and back after the appointment on Monday. Hope the weather is decent. We will be staying with my aunt, Mary Lou!! I haven't seen her for so long!! It will be great to have a visit where we can just sit around the kitchen table and gab. :) She is making dinner on Sunday afternoon and my sister, Renee, and her son, Joel, will stop by after church--so I will get to see them, too! Nice! Dagan, Leah, and I wanted to show them all The Secret movie after we eat. See what they think of it? Going to be fun! And I am thinking positive about the car trip and that I will feel fine (painwise) and will feel okay when I get home... :) I so seldom leave the apartment--even to go shopping with Leah for a couple hours, to go paint at Dagan and Leah's for the evening, or take a bus trip during the day--that going away for a couple of days is a big deal around here! hehe! :) Exciting! And don't worry--I will bring my pain pills with me. "Trust Allah, but tie your camels." hehehe!! And I will bring the camera, too! Next Sunday at this time will probably be helping Mary Lou set the table!! :)

Saturday, February 24, 2007

It never warmed up in here past a certain chilly point. And, of course, the office isn't open all weekend. I can't say this is a real emergency, so I will wait and call on Monday morning to have them come and check the heat registers and see if they can latch the living room windows. I have tried and tried, but I can't do it. The air comes in all along there where the top half of the window meets the bottom half. Anyways, the heat register is piddling away, the wind has died down, and the temperature is supposed to be up to the 20s for highs during the day this weekend--so maybe it will be warmer after while? How cold was it yesterday? Miss Karma has weaseled her way into being on the desk by the computer, but she knows she is not allowed on the kitchen counters or my craft table--when I am awake or can see her anyways (you know cats). I made more hot coffee yesterday afternoon, walked into the kitchen, and there was Karma curled up on the counter next to the hot coffeepot! hehe! It was warmer in the usually cooler hallway than in my apartment--felt good out there!! I washed two partial loads of clothes--just to run the dryer. I even baked muffins--just to run the oven. Still was cold in here. Still is cold in here.Funny--I went to bake muffins and remembered that I only had the weird no-gluten flour that I had made that was so terrible. (It has been that long since I have baked anything!) Found some wheat flour--so used half and half. Not the best muffins--had nothing to put in them but cinnamon. Oh well--they're edible. I went online and added some white flour to my March order from the grocery store--hehe! I also checked online and Carnivale was cancelled after two seasons. There were many, many websites of protest and petitions! So, I think they might not have known ahead of time that they were being cancelled? Could end abruptly--but it is so good that I want to watch every episode they made. I wonder why HBO has started to do the same thing that regular TV has been doing--cutting off shows randomly that have a continuing storyline? It is very annoying. Seems like nobody can make a committment these days to anything. HBO brags about their quality, etc--but they have good shows and dump them, too? I loved Deadwood, also--and there were protests and petitions on them cancelling Deadwood, too. Is it any wonder that TV (and the Cable stations, too) are having trouble keeping loyal viewers? If you can't count on them--they keep moving the shows to new times and new days, and they pull new shows off the air regularly--why bother even watching them? Why not just wait it out and see which ones survive? I think there must be a lot of people doing that more and more. It's their own fault--they have taught the public not to want to get attached to new shows--or even ones that have been on a couple of years, for that matter. I am virtually housebound right now--and a TV baby from the 50s--and I don't like to start watching new shows anymore. I can see why Lost wanted to negotiate how many years they had left so they could plan out the ending--AND MORESO--so they could assure people it will stay on the air and you really will find out what the ending is. The lowest common denominator programs are getting less and less interesting and the ones that are different--get cancelled anyways 90% of the time. Something new and different becomes an actual hit--and they will clone it and clone it. That's my rant for the day--hehe! Well, it is TV, right? Just like the movies these days--the vast majority of decisions are based on money and numbers--not on content. Viewers have somehow become as disposable as the shows are. May be why I order HBOs I was never able to see and a lot of Independent, BBC, PBS, Documentaries, and Foreign films--hehe! Just my humble opinion from the frozen tundra. :)

Friday, February 23, 2007

Woke up and it was soooo cold in here again! Karma was racing around acting like a crazy person. Could hear the wind whistling against the windows. Well, turns out Karma was not trying to remember her youth by racing thru the apartment and howling like she wanted to go behind the dressers (she hasn't fit behind there since she was a kitten), she was actually trying to tell me something. It was so cold in here because the porch door had popped open a couple of inches. So--we are very slowly warming up in here. Really made me laugh! I was all set to call the office and have them come and check the heat--and this time it was my own fault. Cracked me up!! Or at least I think it will warm up in here eventually...???It had been so warm for a couple of days that Karma was wanting to go in and out of the porch off and on all day and evening--I forgot to latch the door. Who would think the wind could blow so hard thru a closed glass storm door that it could pop open the big door?!! Only in North Dakota--haha! It is really blowing in my direction again today--that's for sure. (I face south--so it is not as common for it to be blasting my windows and porch.) And the whistling sound is from the windows in the living room. I cannot latch them anymore since they permanently bolted the top half of the windows up a few months ago. The wind just comes up between them--nothing I can do. No wonder it is chillier in here this winter than it was last winter.So, I am sitting here with layers of clothing on and a mug of hot black coffee--trying to get the chill out of my bones. Karma is still all wound up! She is racing back and forth across the apartment every five minutes and crying--still telling me all about it. She is very vocal and we talk all the time. :) I already let her outside in the cold wind--she cried and cried to be let out, believe it or not. Was blowing so hard I could barely get the door open to let her back in. She is crying to go out again. I told her NO! I think the wind and the howling and whistling sounds get her all worked up! She just raced from the chair by the window to the kitchen again--sounds like an elephant! She's annoyed with me for telling her she can't go outside. What a nut! It is 2 degrees out there--imagine what the wind chill is! It is friggin cold enough inside--let alone on the porch! Karma is intrigued by anything that is different or new and the door has never been cracked open like that and the windows didn't used to talk to her. In Karma's world--how much more exciting can it get! hehe! My Cable TV disappeared early in the morning yesterday. No more cable. So, for now, I can only watch DVDs and things on tape in the living room--which I decided is just fine for a few days. I am not going to switch the antenna into the living room. It really annoys Gracie for me to go in the bedroom to watch TV, tho. chuckle! I went in to watch Ellen yesterday afternoon because she had Oprah on as a guest. I hardly ever see Oprah as a guest on someone else's show, so it was interesting. She was promoting her two speicals, of course--but they spent a lot of time just chatting. Then I saw that Oprah had some new diet thing with Bob Greene on her show after Ellen--and I peeked at that, too. Oprah is doing a year long weight loss thing with Bob Greene's new book--and they picked six people to do this program and be filmed--and people can join up online and do it with them.But--if you believe in LOA--it just doesn't seem like a person should have to be in such pain every single day to be healthy? Just like on The Biggest Loser? It is a way to force a faster weight loss, I guess. I thought scientists had just found out that as long as you do some form of exercise (gardening, walking stairs, dancing, bicycling, cleaning, walking the dog) consistently every day--that can be effective for your health and weight loss? We have gotten too sedentary in our lifestyles in the Western civilization, that's very true. For many centuries all people did was live their lives--and their lives took a lot more physical work than ours do these days. But I can't imagine Egyptians, Romans, Greeks, the pioneers, people in the Middle Ages, the Victorian Era, or even people 50 years ago worrying that they had to test their endurance and break a sweat every day to be healthy. I thought the "no pain-no gain" thing from the 90s was proven untrue years ago? But--then again--if you really believe that to be the truth--then it is the truth for you, I suppose. ???Anyways, the wind is howling, the windows are whistling, I am still chilled to the bone. Get very achey in the cold. Going to get blankets and watch some more of Carnivale this afternoon and warm up. I am getting to the end of season one. Only two seasons on DVD. I should try to look it up online and find out if it was cancelled after two seasons or not? Glad I made some chicken stir fry last night--can heat it up in the micro and crawl right back under the blankets with hot food!! yumm!!! Hope you all are warmer than we are--hehe! :)

Thursday, February 22, 2007

Had a really hard time falling asleep last night for the first time since I made the decision to be on days. Was in bed before midnight (my own cut off time), but couldn't get comfortable. Got up and took a pain pill and was finally dozing off when the party started at 1:30am. Loud, pounding music--and the floor shook sometimes? I finally decided to just get up. Lost myself in a FarScape episode so I could ignore the music. It went on an hour and a half or so--not positive, because I didn't pay close attention to when it stopped--but was wide awake when it finally did. Went and read online posts for a while and got to bed about 5am. I set the alarm for 10am so I would go back into my night schedule. I am up--but kind of half here--ha!

I had gotten an email from a lady writer on Eons a couple days ago--and that got me to go back and check them out. This was the new site for people over 50. It is a little easier to navigate, I guess, and they have added some things. But, what I thought was interesting--they have a new group for The Secret, now, too!! It has really been spreading around since being on Oprah--naturally--hehe! Since I am looking for like-minded folks online--I hooked up into the Eons group, too, for The Secret.On the whole--since I made the decision to be on days back on the 4th--I have been on days. The latest I had been to bed (before last night, of course) was 12:15am and only one time. The latest I have slept has been 10am. That is really good for me!!! Last night was just a little glitch and I should be good and tired by tonight--even if I have a short nap during the afternoon--hehe! Something else--all this positive thinking must be working--little by little. :) I noticed that I am able to sit at the computer longer total time in a day than I had been before--can go back off and on more times--without paying dearly for it the next day and being put out of commission! tada!!! Having a couple more hours in a day--priceless!! :)

Last time I watched The Secret I picked up on how you need to be in a healthy emotional state to be healthy physically. You must de-stress to heal. And nothing can happen without gratitude for what you already have. I realized that just burying emotional pain doesn't release it. I have thought I could just bury the pain and ignore it and carry on, you know? And, when I think about this from a new perspective, I have just ended up carrying around all that pain until it has manifested and become an actual constant physical pain I carry around with me 24/7. (fibro, etc) So--now I am working on figuring out how to release that old emotional pain/fears. While I was reading posts last night I came across several people discussing "tapping"as a way to release.....something?? I need to go back and read on the website. Several people talked about how it helped them to release emotional stuff or helped them to lose weight or to change old ways of thinking..?? I haven't investigated it or read about it yet--or found out if it costs money--but here is the website. http://www.tapping.com/ I saw there's a little movie to watch about how to do this, apparently, but I was too tired and needed to get to bed. Who knows? This might end up being the good thing that came out of a night of loud music--hehe! ??? If I could tap away the pain and fear and bad habits--tap, tap, taping I will go!! chuckle!! :)

I didn't go over to Dagan and Leah's last night. Next week...I did watch The Prestige: At the dawn of the 20th century, rival magicians Robert Angier (Hugh Jackman) and Alfred Borden (Christian Bale) are desperate to reveal each other's secrets. Obsessed by the escalating competition, the two illusionists begin to perform increasingly risky tricks -- which soon turn deadly. Michael Caine, Scarlett Johansson and David Bowie also star in this taut psychological thriller from director Christopher Nolan.

It was pretty good! The secrets of how they did their tricks was slowly revealed. Loved the feel of the movie--lighting and costumes. Had to look twice to recognize David Bowie! Such a conservative role for him!Oh--and for those of you who were wondering--Leah hasn't heard anything about India yet. The company hasn't even completed the sale yet! Very slow process, I guess. Much slower than they ever expected in Leah's office, that's for sure--hehe! She and the other two ladies may still be going--time will tell. ???

I had jotted this down from when Oprah had her second show on The Secret:

We need to be balanced: financially, relationally, spiritually, physically, and intellectually.

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Dagan, Leah, and I are discussing whether we are meeting up tonight or not -- via email. Hasn't the world changed? For once it is me who is not really in the mood to paint. Don't know why--just feels like anything I will try tonight won't work. I have those days with crafts, my handwriting, or painting. It just feels like a bad painting day. One of those days where I literally feel weak--a noodle day. I would want to be home by 9pm, anyways--because both Lost and Medium are on at the same time. Since I could lose Cable TV at any time today or tomorrow--I cannot count on recording on both TVs with only one having an antenna and working. I've always wondered why there can be little on for days and then on one night there will be shows on at the same time that you like enough not to want to miss--hehe! I know--silly, eh? I have been cutting way back on the TV that I watch, but both those shows are still on my list. :)I offered to bring the movie The Prestige over for us to watch instead--but Leah doesn't think it sounds like anything that would interest her. So, I will probably stay home this week. Dagan will drop by after work and pick up the things I was going to bring over. Leah wanted to borrow my iron, etc.Nice enough again that Karma has spent time on the porch this afternoon. Darker day--clouds--and windier again, but it's 42 degrees right now!! Wow! Like spring out there!! Obviously I haven't been able to think-believe-intend away the fibro yet--but I am working on it. It is like shifting gears. Like trying to switch into reverse on a steep hill--hehe! Not impossible--but can be done! :)And you are living right now with the effects of past thought. There is a time delay or a time lag. So, it will take a while--but I am catching myself all the time when I find myself thinking old ways. Am aware of what I put my focus on and how I feel. I will see results--in time. I will see results. I will see results. If I created this--I can create something else, right? :) Think positive!! :)

Tuesday, February 20, 2007

I called today and my Cable bill goes from the 21st to the 21st. So--I went ahead and cancelled my Cable TV today. I'll just have one TV for a while till the new antenna comes. The deed is done!

Caroline came and cleaned today. It is so warm--37 degrees right at this moment--that Karma has been outside a couple times and actually spent time out on the porch! I even put the old TV tray out there so she could look out between the rails and see what was happening. It got so warm in here without the heat on that I cracked the bedroom window open for Caroline when she was cleaning. Talk about a quick shift from the very cold weekend! Life in the MidWest is never neutral, it seems--hehe!Tomorrow is acrylic painting over at Dagan and Leah's. Going to see if I can leave a note on my Sparkpage, too. I feel badly that I was forced to disappear on all those nice ladies because I couldn't get back on Sparks. ?? Who knows if I can get on from Dagan's computer even? Still on days. :) Life is good!

Monday, February 19, 2007

It was a weekend of TV and movies and being curled under a blanket. Was just plain cold in here. Had the heat on full blast and it was really chilly. The heat seems to have slowed down the past few days and then the wind was coming in my direction this weekend, too. The howling made Karma jumpy last night and that could have been what put a quarter in Miss Gracie, I suppose--hehe!This morning--no wind my way. The morning sun warmed it up in here a bit. Much better! :)Was a good weekend to have Cinema Paradiso: Director's Cut: Director Giuseppe Tornatore's sentimental tribute to moviegoing of days past celebrates its 12th anniversary with an additional 48 minutes of footage. Spanning three stages of a man's life, Cinema Paradiso tracks the relationship between a boy, Salvatore, and the cinema projectionist, Alfredo (Philippe Noiret), who inspired him to become a film director.

With the additional minutes it was 2 hours and 50 minutes of subtitles. Perfect for snuggling under a blanket all afternoon. Was pretty good, too. I enjoy seeing how different life is in foreign countries--and this covered several time periods, also. I was amazed just by how the crowd behaved in a movie theater! hehe! The ending was not what I expected--but, being American, we seem to be less compassionate about betrayal by loved ones. It was a good ending, tho. Then I had to watch Desperate Housewives and Brothers and Sisters last night, too, of course.You just never know what they are going to do next on Desperate Housewives! Had another death last night, Orson's formerly dead wife--now really dead. And now his mother is paralyzed and cannot speak--so glad--hehe! Wonder if that will last, tho? Always something happening on Wisteria Lane!!And then I watched Brothers and Sisters, which I started watching because I love Sally Field. There are enough story lines going on at once that, if you don't find one very interesting, you're bound to find one that does keep your interest, I guess. You never know what they are going to do on that show, either--but it is much slower moving than Desperate Housewives. My aunt and I watch them and compare notes via email! hehe! Makes me almost feel like we are watching it together. :)It is really a mystery as to why I cannot access www.sparkpeople.com any longer--just like that?? I don't get any of the team emails anymore, but I see that I get mail from people I used to chat with--but I cannot open them? Not on my desk computer or my laptop? It's been weeks! Just is strange. Everything else is working just fine on both my computers? I had Dagan check and he could get to their website on his computer--no problem. It is a mystery of cyberspace. Maybe next time I go over for painting at Dagan and Leah's I will see if I can get to my homepage from their computer--and at least leave a little note to tell people what happened to me? But who knows if I can access my own homepage from their computer, either? Strange!

I need to take some more angel pictures, I guess. I am out. :) I'm sure I must have some more around here. Smaller ones. ??Have a good day. Hope you're warmer than I was this weekend--hehe!

Sunday, February 18, 2007

Miss Karma is going to have to wait until I can make an order to Drs Foster and Smith in March to have something to help with her dry coat. I tried bracing a knife into the cat dish and slicing thru the capsules from above. It is probably a very lucky thing all my knives are quite dull--as that was rather a dangerous approach with slippery capsules. I managed to open two of them and that was it for me. The smell is also disgusting, to say the least. So, Karma will just have to wait. Phew! Phew! Phew! And I like all my fingers!

Last night I watched Little Miss Sunshine:

Convinced little Olive (Abigail Breslin) is beauty queen material, parents Richard (Greg Kinnear) and Sheryl (Toni Collette) and the rest of the family embark on a life-altering road trip to a pageant in this madcap comedy, nominated for a Best Picture Oscar. Struggling motivational speaker Richard pushes Olive to win, while her silent brother (Paul Dano), depressed uncle (Steve Carell) and nursing-home reject grandpa (Alan Arkin) add their own quirks to the mix.

A disfunctional family movie--with some twists. Of course, I enjoyed it. :)I worked on letters yesterday. A nice, quiet day for Karma and I. Gracie, tho, was in a very yacky mood--which seems to have spilled over into this morning--ha! Who put a quarter in her? So, I just put on Music To Disappear In and that should calm her down. If not her--it sure calms me down--hehe! :) Have a good day!!

Saturday, February 17, 2007

I spent most of yesterday deleting from websites I no longer want to visit and getting set up on the ones I do. Cleaning up my favorites, too. I do save a lot of favorites! Have them in 48 catagory folders--and there are folders within folders! Didn't realize I had that many. Nobody else would probably be able to figure them out--hehe! Some of them come and go as my interests shift. I love the Internet!Well, the idea of putting cod liver oil into Karma's food for her coat was quite challenging!! The problem--how to open the capsules! This was my first attempt this morning. I tried a small cutter knife first--but didn't make a large enough hole and when trying to squeeze out the VERY SMELLY fish oil the capsule collapsed and squirted the stinky oil all over my neck!! ROFL!! Got all over my hands and the cutter, too--which wasn't easy to clean, BTW. Karma was really crying up an anticipatory storm as the pungent smell permeated the kitchen. Then I tried a scissors--and placed a hand over while I cut to avoid squirtage--and cut two of them in half. Well--I had fish oil all over the scissors and my hands and the sides of the bowl. I just dropped the halves into her bowl and left it at that. Karma ate three of the four halves of the capsules! I figured they can't hurt her--we swallow them.After soap and a washcloth and lots of scrubbing (wouldn't you know, I had just gotten out of the shower and dressed, of course)--I feel halfways clean and don't smell quite so much like a fishwife anymore--hehe! I will think on this problem and try to figure out a way to do this that is much less messy. If that is even possible--hehe!Have a good day!! :)

Friday, February 16, 2007

These three angel pictures are actually cards. They were the most colorful angels I had ever seen. I purchased the cards and had them for years--keeping my eyes open to find three matching frames, which wasn't easy because of the one square card. I finally did find them one day--at Bed, Bath, and Beyond I think. I love the boldness of them!Yesterday I washed four loads of clothes. Even washed the towels that have sat too long folded up on the chrome shelves in the bathroom. I watched a couple more DVDs from the series The Carnivale--am thoroughly hooked! And I watched another movie about Truman Capote. I actually liked this one even better than the one that got more press--"Capote" with Philip Seymour Hoffman. I liked that one, too--but this one was more realistic--subtle. Infamous is the name of it.

Director Douglas McGrath's biographical drama stars Toby Jones as iconoclastic writer Truman Capote, whose investigation into the grisly murders of a rural Kansas family has unintended consequences. While probing the psyches of the killers (played by Daniel Craig and Lee Pace) as research for his soon-to-be best seller In Cold Blood, Capote forms an attachment to one of the convicted men. Sandra Bullock and Jeff Daniels also star.

Capote was such a bold, magnetic, and tragic figure. I can remember seeing him so often on Johnny Carson and Mike Douglas and Dick Cavett--and you could watch his disintegration over the years. Toby Jones really captured the natural Truman--his voice, attitude, and even his body language. I really thought it was done masterfully--the editing--the music--the acting--and all the little details. Really enjoyed it--sad as the topic of the murders is. That is just a very small part of this movie.

I am still on days. Been thinking a lot about why I had always been a night person. It always felt like a safe time. Was a time after most all of the people were asleep--and I was alone and safe. It always felt like my own time. Was a time after the daily work and duties were done--I finally had my time to myself. It always felt like a creative, contemplative time. Was the time for me to read and write and think about my life's path. Was the time I did my crafts and art--my free time. I have been patterned in that fashion most all my life--and don't want to give that up.

Well, I now have free time--all the time. I have creative, artistic, safe time--all the time. I am just not used to it being in the daytime--hehe! I am used to night coming--like a cloak--a comforting blanket--before I felt I could really just breathe easily and be myself. After being employee, student, mother, wife, lover, friend--it was just me and God or just me and my soul. Maybe I am not used to dealing with my soul and God all day long? ha!

Anyways, I have just been contemplating. Trying to shift myself over to days--in another aspect. I am awake days and sleeping nights--but I am not being as productive--and I feel something is missing. I was wondering why. Hence the reflection. Still learning more about myself, I guess, eh? I have to shift myself over to feeling free all day long--feeling safe all day long--feeling creative all day long. Without the cover and the peace of night.

Or I have to find a way to bring the safety and peace of the night into my days......

Thursday, February 15, 2007

Well, the post finally worked yesterday--but I lost the paragraphs after the photos? Losing paragraphs used to happen before so, apparently, switching to Google didn't help with that problem. But it does look like the entire blog was moved and it looks the same as it always did. Good.Went over to Dagan and Leah's for acrylic painting last night. Leah had forgotten to make the dough up ahead of time for the pizza, so we opted for Chinese delivery. Chicken Fried Rice again for me. Yummy!!! Had a little bit left over -- brought home for Miss Gracie. She loves rice!We ended up watching MythBusters and then they made me up as a Wii character. Showed me the Wii voting and the Wii weather. What a strange contraption! I do love the bowling!! :) We ate and by the time we got to the painting it was 8pm! Leah was hard-boiling eggs to make deviled eggs for work on Friday (potluck). Dagan and I painted for about an hour. I experimented with watering down the acrylics to use them like watercolors. I know I have read that people do that--but apparently not on canvas--hehe! Maybe they do it on actual watercolor paper? Didn't work at all--but, luckily, it wiped right off. Getting the table ready for painting. It is covered with a clear vinal sheet and we put canvas down to protect the floors.Dagan working on miniatures.

My practice sky--undamaged by my experimentation.

Unless they do have company next Wednesday night (one of the only nights they have free), I will go back again next week and practice my scumbling sky again. Even if they aren't in the mood to paint, they said I can come over and paint. :)

Of course, this new Wii machine is soooo fascinating that I could be easily side-tracked again! I would like to pretend bowl again, for sure.

Leah sent home a bag of stuff for me. When I got home I discovered that it was all her Shaklee supplements. She has decided not to take them any more--going to think and intend herself healthy. The Secret, depending on how you interpret it, can be kind of back to her Christian Scientist roots, I guess. Leah is still doing the protein shake, tho. She just plain loves it and isn't hungry before her break at work--so she is sticking with that part. I had been thinking of just taking the multiple vitamin and making the protein shake in the morning--even wondering about quitting the menopause supplements? My reasoning was more due to finances, tho--hehe! Now, I have vitamins and supplements to last me a while that won't cost me anything--so I'll take them. You betcha! She knew I would. :) And it won't cost me as much to keep taking the menopause supplements and the few things I take that Leah didn't. There was no way I wanted to stop the digestive stuff right away. I have really felt I have had a lot of improvement with those. I just planned on weaning off and seeing how it goes. Now--I can wait a while. :)

I am trying to intend myself healthy, too. I just have farther to go than Leah does--hehe! Or I just believe I have farther to go than she does--hehe! Either way--I have farther to go--ROFL!!! Regardless, that was really nice of her to pass them on to me and is greatly appreciated! Dagan is going to continue to take the multiple vitamin, BTW. I didn't ask him if he is going to stick with the shake, too?

We just seem to be on this rapidly shifting path the last couple of years. The path is all forwards or upwards, whichever way you want to look at it. All good! Every step has been a learning process. Feels like climbing a ladder or a mountain path. We keep trying different things to see how they work. Shaklee has definitely done something for me--both with the digestion and the menopause. I am not ready to let my intention take over--yet. hehe!

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

I had trouble getting the blog to work today. Lost it twice. I guess I finally was forced to switch over to the new version that goes thru Google? So, I have now done that and we'll see how this works--and if it looks any different or I have lost any older posts? My entire blog was supposedly moved?Well, this is what I worked on last night--another layer of color on the petals and worked on the stems a little.My paintings look better if you don't see pictures of what they are "supposed" to actually look like sitting right next to my novice "artistic interpretations"--hehe!

Dagan is coming to pick me up after work about 5ish tonight. We are going to finally work on some acrylic painting--ta da!! Leah is going to use Dagan and I as her willing guinea pigs again tonight, too--testing her home made pizza again!! Yummy! We had it Sunday night when I was over. Leah wants to feel she has it down before she invites some friends over to dinner for pizza. It was good the first time!! :)

I will pick up the cod liver oil capsules, too. I missed those when I was digging around in the dark in the back seat of the car on the way home from Target on Monday--hehe! Karma has been more than happy with the new Meow Mix "canned" food with sauce, tho, in the meantime. (It is in a small plastic container instead of a can.) Miss Karma gets her tablespoon or so of canned food in a special dish every morning. I take the chill off of it in the microwave if it has been in the frig, too. She isn't spoiled--you think?

I watched a really intriguing movie last night from Netflix. I am always fascinated by true stories and this movie was based on a memoir. Now I want to read the book! Talk about a basketfull of crazy folk, bizarre family life, and strange circumstances! I love a story of somebody surmounting difficulties in life! :) It was sad and funny and disturbing. Wouldn't be everybody's cup of tea, I am sure--but it was mine--hehe! Was called Running With Scissors:

Today I have been watching the first two episodes of another HBO series I have wanted to see--Carnivale. Set in the depression years--I love it so far! Lots of really strange folk in a carnival--right up my alley! And in the first episode you find out that this young man the carnival picked up (saved really) has a hidden ability--he can heal people and animals! And he sees visions of the future (WWII??)--and so does this preacher. so I am sure they'll run into each other eventually. I am totally hooked!!

Inbetween times, I also am still watching episodes of FarScape. Am finally on season three of that series I borrowed from Dagan and Leah--and am still enjoying it. I am sure I will have plenty to watch once I am not with Cable TV anymore. Probably still way too much--hehe!

Well, I am off to make a mug of my french vanilla internation coffee. :) Do you think Leah spoils me, too? Maybe it is a good thing for me that they don't have a cat!? ROFL!!!

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

My old Jensen antenna in the bedroom and the kind of picture it can get. This is what I was seeing in the living room.Obviously, the second mid-range priced antenna went back, too. Decided to try to find one like my old one online. Best Buy doesn't have Jensen brand right now. I couldn't find them for sale anymore online. Found their newer version. But found the older version for sale--where else--on Ebay! Dagan and Leah have a pay pal account and Leah might try to bid on one for me. Either that, or I will buy the newer version. I'd like to have this taken care of by the end of the month.Leah was going to Target with her younger sister, Ariel, last night for her 10% off day. She emailed me and asked me if there was anything I wanted to pick up and pay them back later. So--I gave her the second antenna to bring back to Best Buy and went with Leah and Ariel to the Fargo Target last night after they had gone shopping at the Moorhead Target. Warning: another case of "Too Much Information" hehe! I went to buy an new electric razor. I bought a Lady Remington like 25-30 years ago. Is it any wonder that it worked like a bad vacuum cleaner where you had to go over and over and over to pick up a string--same thing but with hair--chuckle! The blades were long ago dull and useless. When the battery dies before you can finish shaving your legs, it is time to buy a new razor. hehe! So, I now have a new Lady Remington charging away--tada! Long overdue. I figured the other one lasted me for many years, so I bought another one. This one should last me until I can no longer even see that far anymore or the hair on my legs goes grey and I don't really care anymore--haha!I was also looking to see if they had supplements for cat's coats--but they didn't. I'll have to order some things next month from my favorite critter webspot--Drs Foster and Smith. Karma has been shedding a lot and I noticed she even has dry skin--like dandruff--just a little bit. So she needs some more oil in her diet. I tried the oils I had for cooking (olive oil, canola, peanut, walnut, sesame, etc)--she refused to eat the food at all. So, I bought her what I could find at Target last night to at least try something in the meantime until I can make an online order in March. Found some new Meow Mix wet food with sauce and bought her some cheap cod liver oil capsules (human supplements) that I will cut and drip into her food. Haven't tried that yet--but it is fish oil, so I thought she shouldn't stick her nose up at that? We'll see.Also, got some new short socks--and Leah surprised me and snuck in four cans of my french vanilla coffee! :) :) I am going to go make me a mug when I finish this blog!Leah didn't even wear her special sandals--and says her feet don't hurt very much at all! (We email back and forth during the day sometimes--she and Dagan and I.) Mine were sore last night--but when I woke up today I was amazed that mine were not as bad as they normally would have been. Hardly hobbling at all. (We are using the power of intention and positive thinking, of course.) Tomorrow Dagan is picking me up after work and we are going to do some painting again!!! Been months since we were playing around with acrylics. Since November maybe? So, that will be fun. I am going to stick with learning how to scumble and working on the storm clouds. That may take me a while--and it is both challenging and enjoyable, so I'll stay the course. hehe!It's a beautiful sunny day today. Minus nine degrees right now, but it is gorgeous out! I am grateful every day that I am sleeping at night and up early in the morning! :) :) Have a great day!!!

Monday, February 12, 2007

This beautiful angel I got from Lynnette is over the inside of my bathroom door.I kind of figured that we might not even get to any Healing Touch techniques or an actual Sacred Circle time yesterday--and we didn't. I knew that us watching The Secret again and spending our time discussing and hashing out what we want to manifest and focus on was the most important thing for us to do yesterday. Was a great day!!!The three of us have talked off and on about all living in the same place for years. After I got on disability, we have still talked about it here and there. Not in the same house, but in my own place closeby--and us doing creative things together. The beading and craft business didn't work out. Leah discovered how boring it can be sitting at a table for two days to sell product--it just is not time and effort productive. Backstory: I had a vision I got from GA many years ago about GA Inc. Long story short--I thought it was so I would know what to do if I ever came into a lot of money, which seemed highly unlikely to say the least--hehe! Anyways, it was a community of positive like-minded souls all doing something they loved--almost like a small town! GA Inc would lend the seed money for different separate businesses--such as alternative health/spirituality (massage, Reiki, Healing Touch, reflexology, aromatherapy, hypnotherapy, yoga, QiGong--who knows?) and small stores (selling things like books, oils, candles, soaps, cards, pottery, crafts, art--again, who knows what all?). There was a place where people could come and stay for retreats or vacation. Many families lived in separate housing nearby. There was a huge co-op type organic garden--and possibly a natural foods store and restaurant. Paths for hiking and cross country skiing had come to mind. Each person who wanted to open a business just needed to be doing what they truly loved--and what God would be proud of them for doing. Each business would sink or swim on its own and not financially effect any of the rest of the community. As people put money back into the main funding--paying back loans--that money was reinvested in new businesses. All the people would be drawn to the place because of the energy and people who didn't have the right energy wouldn't stay anyways (because a lot of people whould come in to work there). I saw trees, water of some kind (river or lake?), and hills. I got this back in like 1994 or somewhere around there--give or take a year.Anyways, lately Dagan and Leah have talked about buying a home (which they have been wanting to do for a while) they were thinking about maybe buying land so that we could have two homes on the place--so I could live there, too. Or that they'd find a place that had a separate living area for me--like a mother-in-law apartment. Leah and I have still always kind of felt that we'd live close and work together on creative stuff of some kind.After watching The Secret--we were all talking about finding a place in the country--having solar heating--and Dagan says maybe a windmill--with two homes on the land or room for two homes. And there would be a huge building on the land for Leah to be in charge of--(she thinks it might actually be a barn, I kind of saw a pole building)--for her to do all the things she loves--metalworking/welding--maybe woodworking--pottery making--glasswork--etc. She'd have kilns and all the equipment she needed--and she'd teach what she knew, too. She might have a store in the front entryway part--like a Clay Your Way like they have in Fargo--where people can come and paint bisqueware, have it fired and come back and pick it up--a ceramics store--and it would have things for sale, too.And I would be healthy again--and be in charge of setting up the arts/crafts building and a spiritual/alternative health building. The arts/crafts building would have large room. We'd need room for up to 10-12 people to come for classes and two instructors--at a huge table with electric outlets along the center of the table. Or to have room for people to set up easels around the room. We'd teach cardmaking, painting, polymer clay techniques--who knows? Other people would come in and teach classes there, too.The spiritual/alternative health building would have one fair sized open room for the things like yoga/mediation/qigong classes. Also would have some folding tables and chairs that could put put up in that room for holding Sacred Circle meetings and for creative writing classes. There'd be 2-3 separate rooms for massage tables and reflexology type zero gravity chairs--or for people to do readings. There would be one quite small, quiet, private mediation room--just for one person at a time. The front or entryway to this building would have a small little store-like area and waiting room/reception area. Possibly the arts/crafts building might have something like that, too?Obviously other people would come and be working there with us. People could come and work the organic garden for a share in the produce--somehow that would be figured out--like a co-op, but really cheap. Mostly would want their help physically. If Dagan and Leah got some land, etc--it might just be the small start--the seed of GA Inc?!! Like start with one building--like re-doing a barn or pole building for Leah. And probably later everything would all move someplace else--more land and more like we all envision. But you have to start someplace smaller, right? Unless we win the lottery or something--hehe!Dagan wasn't sure what else he was going to do there. But he knew he could run a website for us to sell things we made. And I do truly believe that the Internet is the up and coming way for sales. You can live anywhere and run a business. These days they even have ways you can package and post at home--and then the mailman will pick up the packages for you! Amazing!! And Dagan has a creative side--given the freedom, he might get into some of the things in Leah's building--or the painting? Leah had been getting that the land would be in South Fargo. Farm buildings surrounded by trees. She said she had the feeling it was just south of where they live now. So--we took off and drove down 8th Street south of Moorhead--and there are many, many clusters of trees with farm buildings surrounded by flat fields. We saw a couple of places close to the road that had more than one home on the spot. We just wanted to snoop to help us visualize. Two homes--barn or large pole building--and a couple smaller buildings--medium sized, not too small--and not more than fifteen minutes south past "civilization". We'd need to be close enough to town that people would drive in for classes, etc. And Dagan and Leah's many friends would come out for gaming nights, as usual.Do we have any idea how this could actually come about? Nope. But in The Secret and with the Law of Attraction--you don't focus on that part. Just wait for doors to open. You are supposed to focus on the result you want. Picture it--feel it--visualize it.I will do that, too, of course--but my first focus is on being healthy. So I can do all these things! :):)May sound wild or impossible--but it is our dream.Leah has the advantage on us from being raised Christian Scientist, actually. She has been believing her feet are healed--and they haven't been bothering her at all recently? She has had plantar fasciitis and told she probably has heel spurs, too--limps around like I do when she is on her feet very long--even at home she wears sandals so she isn't in her stocking feet so her feet don't bother her so much. She was baking in the kitchen a few days ago for like five hours in her stocking feet and her feet didn't hurt the next day! Now that is faith!! That girl has faith! She has been dealing with this for years!! ??? So, I have been visualizing that every time I step on my feet that I am pushing the bone spurs back into my feet and my feet will be back to normal again. And all day long I tell myself that every time I am moving my hips and knees and all over my body where I have the osteoarthritis--well, I visualize that I am rubbing off all that little grainy stuff and the bones are going to be smooth again.Wish us luck!! Optimism rules!! :) :) :)

Sunday, February 11, 2007

Here's the angel night light that sits on my bedroom TV. Also a bit dusty, I see. Taking pictures makes me more aware of how poorly this place gets dusted since I count on Caroline--hehe! I guess I am due to go thru the place with a fine tooth comb, as they say.Today Dagan comes around noonish with the middle priced rabbit ears for the living room TV. Hope they work well. Then we are off to their place for Sacred Circle! Going to be a busy day! Not much time to chat--got to get moving. :)

Saturday, February 10, 2007

I keep my most often worn jewelry, crystal prayer beads, watch, and pedometer in this angel container on my nightstand. I took this picture right after Caroline had been here to clean. As you can see, she is not particular about dusting--hehe!

Yesterday, after I finished my blog, I went to rinse out my cup and there was no water. I called the office and they said the water would be off until about 1:00pm. He sounded as if I should have known this. I told him I hadn't seen any posting on it. He told me they had put up notices on the doors. I told him that, since I rarely leave the building, if the notices aren't posted above the mail boxes I would not have to opportunity to see these anouncements--nor would any of the stay-at-home mothers in the building or some of the other disabled people living here. A light bulb moment for him (he's new). :)When I went down to get my mail (after the water was already on again) there was a notice over the mailboxes. ROFL! When the water came back on it was blue! Yuck! Makes you wonder what they put in there and why? I am glad I got my new Shaklee water pitcher the day before and had filled all my water bottles. But it would have been nice to know ahead of time so I could have showered and run some water for me to soak dirty dishes, etc. Oh well.I didn't get as much sleep yesterday, so I was pretty tired all day. Didn't get to any painting. In fact, I was dozing off in my chair before 7pm! Me! So, I went to bed at 7:00 at night--amazing! Slept till 4:30am. Feel more rested today.The one thing I did do yesterday was sign up for www.powerfulintentions.com -- a link from The Secret website. I have been snooping around a little. This morning I wrote down the areas that I can fill in on my home page. Whew! I have to really think about these!1. my powerful intentions2. my life's purpose3. my values4. my story5. my visionNot exactly something you can just whip off a few words on off the top of your head. At least, I can't--found myself speechless--hehe! In the first place, I am in the process of a life re-evaluation at the moment. And part of my problem is that I don't know my life's purpose, my vision, or what my powerful intentions should be? And I have to think about exactly what my values are? And how do I condense my story?! hehe! So--until I have clearer answers to these questions, they shall remain blank. I have some serious pondering ahead of me, I guess. :)I am still completely and mysteriously cut off from sparkpeople.com. I am not getting any of the team emails any more now, either. Well, I'd have to say that, right off the bat with the above questions, it does feel like this PI website is exactly what I need right now. :)

Friday, February 09, 2007

Here's the TV tray I use to hold the paint, etc. I'm using a smaller porcelain palette for the flower colors right now.Leah stopped by last night. The salesman at Best Buy told her to buy the cheapest antenna first and work your way up to see what you need as there is a wide range of prices. The cheapest one didn't work very well--nowhere near as well as the one in the bedroom. So I still have Cable TV in the living room for now. She's going to get a middle priced one next. I think that is what I have in the bedroom--middle price range. (This means I get to watch Monk one more time! *big grin*)I have not been able to get onto the sparkpeople.com website for days. ?? I can't open any of the links that came in the email updates from the groups I was in either. "Page cannot be displayed"--cannot access the site at all-period. ?? I guess The Universe might be trying to tell me that I am spending way too much time on Sparks?? Maybe Sparks is not where I should be focusing my attention anymore? Focusing on dieting and weight loss and such hasn't felt right since I have been aware of what I am focusing on--and how I am sending that out as a kind of order to be fulfilled. According to LOA--if you focus on losing weight you will be given extra weight to lose. I have to change my thinking--change my "fat" thoughts--hehe! After I read and heard that, I found sparks to be a place of fat focus, I guess--for me, anyways. I will miss all the positive ladies I met there, tho. Friendly and supportive--I was going to say "in the struggle to lose weight"--and that is exactly what keeps my focus there--on the "struggle"--and I am sending that out. Okay--I guess there's a reason I have been kind of blocked out of Sparks for days, eh? Time to move on, I guess. Onward and upward!! I need to learn to love my body!

I had actually been thinking ever since I saw The Secret on January 15th that I might join The Secret online website called Powerful Intentions I discovered snooping around on The Secret website. I finally decided to just go ahead and do it this morning! If I am going to be spending any computer time chatting--I might as well be chatting and learning about The Secret and The Law of Attraction, right? I thought I'd try it for a month and see how I like it. It's $14.95 a month if you go beyond the free membership--which of course doesn't provide as much--hehe! So--thinking abundantly--I joined! I'll let you know what I think of the website after I learn my way around a bit. :)I was impressed with Oprah's show on The Secret. I had been worried that they might focus too much on the material side of it, but I didn't think they did. I think they made it very clear that it was about gratitude and how one can be of service in this world. Yes--good things can come to you, too--material things. You can get yourself out of debt, etc. Anything is possible, I guess. I had to state an intention to The Universe when I joined the powerful intentions website. I put down--"I am healthy." :)

Thursday, February 08, 2007

The Secret!! So excited that Oprah is spreading the word today. I am taping the show in case Dagan and Leah's tivo doesn't work. I wonder how it will come across in abbreviated form? Excited to find out!

Dagan and Leah and I are finally getting together for Sacred Circle on Sunday. We are making a day of it and starting at around noon. We're going to watch The Secret DVD again, too! Going to really discuss what our dream life would be like so we are all on the same page. Going to go over some more Healing Touch techniques, too. Can hardly wait!

All that came yesterday with UPS was the second half of Leah's Cleaning Kit. So, I am hoping our regular order will arrive today. Seems odd that they are coming one box a day when they should have been mailed together?

Leah said she'd try to make it tonight with the rabbit ears. If we get them all set up in the living room I will call tomorrow and cancel Cable One TV. What a jolt to my system!! :)

I was painting yesterday, but I am on the laptop in the bedroom right now so I can't post the pictures because they aren't on this computer. I was just so excited about Oprah and The Secret that I am doing a really quick early blog today. :)

Hope you all get a chance to see the actual DVD of The Secret one day. :)

Wednesday, February 07, 2007

This is my trusty magnetic chalkboard in the entryway. I would have been lost without it when I was in college. I always had notes of things to remember to bring with me and appointments, etc. I had it right on my door in Moorhead so I couldn't miss the important notes!

Here's a close up of the naked angel above the chalkboard. And here is the reading angel hanging alongside the chalkboard. How could I resist a reading angel!!?? (It is hard to take pictures of white on white, I discovered.) It is 17 below right this minute. We had enough snow yesterday to keep the snow plow guy busy for a while in the parking lot.

Leah isn't sure if she will make it tonight or tomorrow night. Her boss at the second job keeps switching what he wants her to do and she and Dagan have plans for later tonight, I believe. She is going to get me the other set of rabbit ears. I offered to go with her, but I would just slow her down when she's in a hurry--very true--can't argue with that--hehe! :)So--today I am watching all the craft shows on HGTV that are on all afternoon. Getting in my last fixes! They are going to be changing the programming later in February anyways to shows about homes and gardening. I was glad to hear that. I won't feel as badly about missing the craft shows.

Dagan stopped after work yesterday and fixed the desk computer so I could get on the Internet again. He took the Shaklee Cleaning Kit box. I got to peek inside because Leah was giving me the plasitc dishwasher soap container. The rest of the order is supposed to come today. I am excited because I finally ordered the water pitcher!! Am anxious to try the nice clean fresher tasting water. :)I managed to sleep during the night again--but in a split shift. I was dragging yesterday and was suddenly so tired I couldn't keep my eyes open at 8pm and went to bed. Woke up at 1am and couldn't get back to sleep until 5am. Slept till 8am. So, I did get in my 8 hours--just not all at once. That's fine.Still slowly watching all the FarScape episodes I borrowed from Dagan and Leah. I am not even done with Season Two yet! I am enjoying it. I really like this kind of SciFi--space travel stuff. I really liked Firefly and was so disappointed that it only lasted one season!! I borrowed that from Dagan and Leah, too. Already watched Firefly--was a western flavored space series. I remember seeing some of them when they were aired on Fox and being upset it was cancelled. Really cool! I loved it! Apparently Fox didn't even air them in order for some reason? Was like they were trying to have the show fail. :(Am really excited about Oprah tomorrow!! She is having the show about The Secret!! I emailed almost everybody I know. Got an email back from Karen, a lady I met at MSUM--and they just showed the movie at her work!! Cool!! She said it was AWESOME!!! Yes, it is! And if anybody is interested in buying the DVD, book, audio book, or soundtrack CDs--or watching it online for $4.95---the website is:http://www.thesecret.tv/Can't tell I am excited about it, eh? I am working at picturing myself healthy first. That is my priority. If I can do that--I can do anything!!! Absolutely anything!!! So, I am working at silencing my negative inner voice--my constant lifetime companion--hehe!

Anyways, be happy to hear what anybody thinks about The Secret....drop me a line or post a comment here on the blog. soulcomfort1@yahoo.com

Tuesday, February 06, 2007

Dagan came last night and hooked up the rabbit ears to the bedroom TV. I will only have four channels: CBS, ABC, NBC, and PBS. What a shock to my system--hehe! Leah is going to pick up another set of rabbit ears for me for the living room TV on Wednesday. When I have them both hooked up and am disconnected from Cable, I am calling and that will be the end of my Cable TV. Shudder!!!I can't get on to the Internet on my desk computer, but I am able to on my laptop. Dagan was doing some stuff on it last night--trying to remotely connect his computer and mine--so he is coming back tonight after work to see if he can figure out why I don't have Internet on the desk computer. Ooops, eh? Caroline came to clean this afternoon--she just left about an hour ago. Part of the Shaklee order came. We have more than one box this time and the other one is supposed to come tomorrow. Leah got the Cleaning Kit and that's what came today. She made me promise not to open it until she comes over tomorrow. We are both excited to see everything in this kit!I have been sleeping nights!! Trying to use positive thinking. I keep telling myself that I will be tired and in bed between 11pm-1am and I will be up between 7-9am. So far so good for the last two nights!! I am a day person! I am a day person! I am a day person! I keep telling myself that. :) :) :)Right now, I am going to eat. I didn't get a chance to make anything before Caroline came over. Maybe I will get back to the paintings today, too. Who knows? Stay warm!

Monday, February 05, 2007

I don't think I have opened up Karma's treat drawer since Christmas! Was she ever excited!! Happy Second Birthday to Karma! She got one of each, BTW--she loves the anticipation as I open each jar--hehe!

Last night I slept from 8pm till 7am!! Up in the daytime!! After a two day sleepathon I am feeling pretty darn good. The washer and dryer and the dishwasher are all going. Nice to be feeling pretty much back to normal again.Just popping in to say hi!!

Sunday, February 04, 2007

For better or worse, I started to post these when I was sick and couldn't think straight--hehe! So, now I will post the step-by-step process for the heck of it. I am trying a different technique for the centers. I put little dots of masking fluid all over them.

Then I painted the centers and shaded them the best I could. And then I removed the masking. In the photos the centers have almost reddish dots--so I will be coloring those in next. (You can always click on any of the photos to enlarge them, too.)Anyways, that is what I got done during the night and this afternoon. I was also writing letters and paying bills. Nice to feel more back among the living. But, I am fading away here and am heading to bed to read. Will be in bed asleep pretty soon, I hope.It is Miss Karma's birthday tomorrow. She will be two years old! I guess I'll have to give her some cat treats and some of her catnip!For those of you interested in The Secret--Oprah is supposed to have a show about it this Thursday the 8th of February! You'd have a much better idea of what I am talking about. They can explain it much better than I can. :) I'd be really interested in what any of you think about it!! Email me or post a comment on the blog!! :)

Well, I totally slept thru Saturday!! At about 5:00am the terrible headache just went away--poof! I went to bed about 7:30am and didn't get up until 11:30pm--16 hours!! The best sleep I've had since I first got sick--one and a half weeks ago. I only woke up about four times, too! It feels so good to be just back to my normal aches and pains! So wonderful not to have that horrible, horrible headache--I could dance, sing, cry!! Feels like I have been gone for a week and a half and just came home. Joy! Joy! Like I have been in a fog and the clouds have lifted! :)A little recooping here and by Monday I will hopefully be ready to get back with the program. Exercising, reading, studying, meditation, painting, crafts--all sounds wonderful! Just wanted to let you know that I am finally feeling myself again. That was a weird flu and migraine ordeal--glad it is over with!It is minus 18 degrees up here. They aren't predicting that we'll be above zero until maybe Tuesday. And yet here I am sitting up in bed on my laptop wanting to open the window in here because I'm having a menopause moment--chuckle!! At least my window is fixed now. I don't remember if I told you that they finally fixed it the morning before I went for my federal housing appointment. It is wonderful to have that option again!! Poor Miss Gracie was covered up all day. She has plenty of food and water and a huge cage, but she didn't get uncovered. She'll be really glad to be up and about when morning comes. I'm sure she got a lot of extra sleep, too. She needed it. I have been up all hours and not sleeping well--so even when she is covered and I am up in the living room--she doesn't get to sleep well. I hear her complain when my shadow passes by her cage--all night long. She probably needed the extra sleep, too. We'll all get back to our normal routine.Well, I guess I should throw on my robe and go down and check my mail at 2am. So glad to be feeling okay again--could dance down the hallway!! :):)

Friday, February 02, 2007

This is what I have been trying to do to take my mind off this endless headache. Traced the flowers from photos off the web, masked them, and painted in the backgrounds. Removed the masking.That is as far as I have gotten. They might not turn out at all, but it is something that I can do to take my mind off feeling crummy. Practice. Practice. Practice.

I haven't felt badly the past several days--as far as nausea or temperature or anything--it is this relentless headache that has me out of commission. It's a hard to sit at the computer/turn all the lights off kind of headache--and it is getting really old--hehe! I've had the headache most of this week now. It can leave any time now!

I watched the silly movies last night! Exactly what I expected--light entertainment. Just what I needed.